Impact Wrestling returns in April; '50 Shades' musical in May

Quick hits

• Ron Yarosz and the Vehicle made the cut -- just barely -- in the Play Crossroads Guitar Festival fan voting that just ended. The top 100 bands advanced to the round where music judges decide who gets to play. The Vehicle came in at No. 100 out of 2,575 bands. Yarosz expects to find out Friday afternoon if the group will get to play the massive event, spearheaded by Eric Clapton, that's set for April 12-13 at New York City's Madison Square Garden. • The Vultures will swoop into Erie again on March 24 at the Crooked I with the Couchriders opening. The cool surf-rock group, based in Florida, features Erie native Dave Waldroop who long ago played in Underground System. Jupiter Jones and Gary Braunns also play in the band, so expect originals and covers of the Trashmen, Ventures, Chantays and more.• Pop-culture convention Steel City Con has lined up guests for its next event, set for April 5-7 at the Monroeville Convention Center. They include Karen Allen, who played Marion Ravenwood in several Indiana Jones films; David Prowse (aka Darth Vader); Kevin "Hercules" Sorbo; Madison Lintz (Sophie from "The Walking Dead"); Sofia Milos ("CSI: Miami"); and Dawn Wells (Mary Ann from "Gilligan's Island"). Tickets details are available at www.steelcitycon.com. • Hot Chelle Rae, who had a Top 10 hit with "Tonight Tonight" in 2011, will play McComb Fieldhouse at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania on May 4. Carolina Liar will open the show. For ticket details, visit www.edinborotickets.com. Price is $20 or $10 for Edinboro students. Don't forget that actor-director John Waters is at Edinboro on April 4; tickets are $10 at the above web site.• Cody McCarver, formerly of Confederate Railroad, performs Saturday in Franklin for the American Legion's St. Patty's Day Party. He'll play acoustic at Ralph E's (9:30 p.m.) and at the Eagles Club (11 p.m.) For more information, call (814) 723-8380.

richardsdERIE TIMES-NEWS

Before you dye your hair green for the weekend, we have a heads up on a couple new events bound for Erie.

Neither has much to do with St. Patrick's Day, but not everything revolves around the Irish. Try to remember that when you eat your potato soup and Reuben for lunch.

First up: wrestling. The superstars of TNA Impact Wrestling return on April 26 to Erie Insurance Arena as part of The Road to Slammiversary World Tour.

A road should lead somewhere, right? This one ends in Boston on June 2 with Slammiversary, a pay-per-view event.

Tickets for Erie start at $15 and will go on sale Friday at the Warner Theatre box office, by phone at 452-4857 and online at www.erieeevents.com. Those who splurge for a $65 ticket will receive an autograph session with select wrestlers before the event at 5:30 p.m.

New musical alert! The Erie Broadway Series has added a show for May 15 -- "50 Shades! The Musical." As the title suggests, this is a sexy, over-the-top romp that parodies the "Fifty Shades of Grey" phenomenon with outrageous dance numbers and original songs, played by an onstage band.

According to an online review in the Daily Beast, the show (created by Chicago improv group Baby Wants Candy) avoids nudity and anything too explicit.

"But the appeal of the show was pure, unadulterated humor -- and it had the packed audience at Manhattan's Gramercy Theater guffawing and sputtering for an entire 90 minutes," wrote Lizzie Crocker.

Ticket prices were still being hammered out at press time, but they will go on sale March 21 at the Warner box office, by phone at 452-4857 and online at www.erieevents.com.

Tickets are also still available for the 2012-13 series final show, "Rock of Ages," on April 15.

If you don't subscribe to Showtime and missed the "History of the Eagles," not to worry. The documentary arrives on DVD on April 30.

I caught all of Part I and most of Part II and it's great stuff with a lot of revealing stories I'd never heard before. The part about band members living above Jackson Browne's apartment is hysterical. He woke them up with "Doctor My Eyes," playing it over and over, trying to get it right. Also, Joe Walsh is brutally honest about the depths of his alcohol problem and credits the Eagles' reunion tour in 1994 with motivating him to sober up. Timothy Schmidt talks about his fear of singing "Take It to the Limit" in concert.

The three-disc set will come with a bonus: "Eagles Live at the Capital Center -- March 1977," with never-before-released performances of "Hotel California," "Rocky Mountain Way," "New Kid in Town," Take it Easy" and more from the band's Washington D.C. tour stop.

Erie native Nick Adams will play the Prince in the national tour of Disney's "The Little Mermaid."

His area fans can see him in Pittsburgh; the show will roll into the Benedum Center from July 9-21. Visit www.pittsburghclo.org for more information.

Quick hits

• Ron Yarosz and the Vehicle made the cut -- just barely -- in the Play Crossroads Guitar Festival fan voting that just ended. The top 100 bands advanced to the round where music judges decide who gets to play. The Vehicle came in at No. 100 out of 2,575 bands. Yarosz expects to find out Friday afternoon if the group will get to play the massive event, spearheaded by Eric Clapton, that's set for April 12-13 at New York City's Madison Square Garden. • The Vultures will swoop into Erie again on March 24 at the Crooked I with the Couchriders opening. The cool surf-rock group, based in Florida, features Erie native Dave Waldroop who long ago played in Underground System. Jupiter Jones and Gary Braunns also play in the band, so expect originals and covers of the Trashmen, Ventures, Chantays and more.• Pop-culture convention Steel City Con has lined up guests for its next event, set for April 5-7 at the Monroeville Convention Center. They include Karen Allen, who played Marion Ravenwood in several Indiana Jones films; David Prowse (aka Darth Vader); Kevin "Hercules" Sorbo; Madison Lintz (Sophie from "The Walking Dead"); Sofia Milos ("CSI: Miami"); and Dawn Wells (Mary Ann from "Gilligan's Island"). Tickets details are available at www.steelcitycon.com. • Hot Chelle Rae, who had a Top 10 hit with "Tonight Tonight" in 2011, will play McComb Fieldhouse at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania on May 4. Carolina Liar will open the show. For ticket details, visit www.edinborotickets.com. Price is $20 or $10 for Edinboro students. Don't forget that actor-director John Waters is at Edinboro on April 4; tickets are $10 at the above web site.• Cody McCarver, formerly of Confederate Railroad, performs Saturday in Franklin for the American Legion's St. Patty's Day Party. He'll play acoustic at Ralph E's (9:30 p.m.) and at the Eagles Club (11 p.m.) For more information, call (814) 723-8380.